Chapter 4 Origins

Sophia couldn't help but cry as she held her successor's hands at the outer gates of the temple. "You hold on Annamarie." Was all she managed to say before the waterworks started. "We will see each other again. Someday."

The old Peacock and a group of 5 older acolytes from the temple soon began the long walk down the mountain, taking a rocky train that only a horse could manage down. Annamarie remained at the doors with Master Niji and Master Dawa until they were out of sight before she felt the pale woman move closer. "Annamarie, I am about to start preparing for tonight's meal. Would you like to join me?"

She knew the offer was in hope of keeping her mind occupied and it sounded like a plan but the dancer shook her head. "I… I think I'll just go… sit on my own for a bit."

"Alright, the offer stands if you change your mind."

Not looking at the pair of them, she slipped past and back into the temple, wandering around the place for a while, noting that any robed man or woman she passed bowed to her. She felt a little uncomfortable, not used to being treated with such formality but eventually she found a place where no one else was around and sat down under a tree, listening to the world around her, a gentle tinkle of water, the breeze of the wind and a birds' song.

Suddenly something soft bounced off her arm and she looked down to see a small black bag of some kind that had landed near her arm. She looked up and saw that boy again, the blue haired one who'd been sent to get her, grinning at her as his eyes darted from the bag to her.

She frowned, picked it up and threw it at him, a little too roughly and turned back to watching the sky.

Again it was thrown at her, this time bouncing off her head.

Shooting a glare at the boy, who was looking very smugly at her, she picked it up and threw it back. "Leave me alone. I don't want to play with you."

He picked it up off the floor where it had landed then kicked it off his own foot and up into the air, over his head and around his body in an impressive display before kicking it towards Annamarie. This time she caught it before it hit her and huffed, standing up and looking at the small bag. "If I play with you for a bit, will you please leave me alone?"

He nodded energetically then moved a little closer, waiting for her to act. She rolled her eyes and sighed before dropping the sack to her foot and kicking it towards him. He moved quicker than she thought he could and kicked it back, sending it into her shoulder. He gave a small chuckle of laughter then watched her, ready for the next round.

Annamarie glared at him. "Alright, one point to you." She bit her lip then tried again, this time returning his attack and swatted it away with the back of her hand. The boy returned it in a similar style and jumped as it hit his face on her response.

The peacock smirked this time. "One all."

He stuck out his tongue childishly then picked up the sack and kicked it towards her. They continued for a while, Annamarie even taking off her jacket as she played with the little boy. She noticed he never spoke but clearly could make sounds as he grunted or chuckled as they played.

"You got a name kid?" She asked between rounds as he went to get a stray shot.

The boy shrugged and returned to the match.

"So… you don't have a name?"

He smiled again and kicked the little bag towards her, watching as she returned it over and over. Their game continued even without the boy's name, ending in a very long round where neither of them were ready to drop the sack or let it hit them.

Annamarie was starting to lose focus, it was moving so fast she could barely keep up, forcing her to take a step back to give herself extra room when her foot rolled on a stone and she fell onto her backside with a grunt, pain shooting up her spine. The boy was laughing furiously at her, almost bent over double.

The teen glared angrily at him, feeling her blood boil. "What's so funny?" She snapped, standing up and storming over to him, pushing him over. "You think that's entertaining do you? Well, let's see what you think of this!" She shouted then pulled back her leg for a powerful kick him, as he lay on the ground.

He whimpered at her strike and tried to get up but she just grabbed his ponytail instead. "Oh, don't think you're getting away that easy." She chuckled darkly into his ear. "We were having such fun too."

"Annamarie!" She blinked at the call and turned to see Master Niji and a group of the students behind him, staring at her with shock and horror. Gradually her eyes focused on them before hearing a little sob and noticed she was still holding the boy by his hair.

"Wh…" She began then let him go, backing off and looking at her own hands. "N… no… I… I didn't… please tell me I… didn't." she gulped then turned and ran into the temple, heading as fast as she could up to her room, pushing past anyone who got in her way and slamming the door shut behind her.

Once inside, she more or less collapsed to the ground and hugged herself. This was it, this was her soul being split in half. Hawk Moth wasn't the problem… it was herself. She'd hurt that innocent boy who was only trying to play with her.

She hugged her knees and cried, ignoring anyone who knocked at her door and telling them to go away, glad that they all listened without question. She had no idea how long she sat there but the sky began to get dark. Unable to see in the darkness, she forced herself to get off the floor to light a lamp then sat on a pillow by the window and looked out on the path and the mountain.

As the sun finally set completely, there was a knock at the door and she sniffed. "Go away."

"It's me." Came the female voice of Dawa. "Can I come in?"

Knowing she should be polite, Annamarie walked over and unlocked the door before pulling it open. Dawa stood on the other side with a tray in her hands. "We missed you at dinner. You must be hungry."

She couldn't look at her. "No… not really."

"Well, try and eat something." The master explained, passing her the tray, most of it being fruit. "And, I thought you would like to know, the boy was unharmed. A little shaken, I will confess, but unharmed."

"I see. Thanks. And… please tell him I'm sorry."

"I'm sure he would rather hear it from you. But I will pass the message on." She nodded her head respectfully then turned to leave, Annamarie a little amazed the conversation had ended so quickly. Once the master was gone, she closed and locked the door again, looking at the food but just the sight of it made her feel sick. She left it on the table in her room and went over to the bed, lying on top and hugging a pillow, trying to sleep.

The next day she didn't even bother to leave her room, staying inside and not answering the door no matter how often someone knocked. Four whole days she didn't leave her room or speak to anyone, deciding to isolate herself instead of risk hurting someone else.

As she looked down from her window on the students playing below, someone else knocked on the door. "Go away." She said sharply.

"Annamarie, open this door."

She winced at the master's powerful voice and slowly moved to obey, unlocking it and looked at the man on the other side. He stared at her then nodded over his shoulder. "Follow me, I have something I wish to show you."

Knowing she didn't really have much of a choice, she slipped on a pair of shoes and followed the man in silence, watching as he led her down into the library below and through the labyrinth of books, until they came to a small room with a single table on it where four books were laid out, each of them bound in red leather.

Annamarie looked around the room and frowned. "What is this?"

"This is the place of beginnings." Niji explained cryptically, walking over to the table with the books. As she got closer, Annamarie noticed there was a gap, about the size of one of the books between the second and third from the edge.

"One's missing?" She asked as she looked over the remaining books. They all looked the same at first glance with the same pattern on the cover but as she looked closer she began to spot differences, a curl instead of a line or three dot where another only had one.

Niji sighed. "Yes. Many years ago, someone managed to steal one of the books. The book of powers. We hope to find it again someday and return it to its rightful place. But for now, I want you to look at this one." He touched the cover of a book.

Annamarie looked at him questioningly as she walked over and opened the book to the first page.

Before her were beautiful, yet simple painted images of the sun, moon and earth as well as some strange writing around the outside of the pictures. She stared at it but then shook her head. "I… I can't read this."

"I wouldn't expect you to. It is the language of the kwamis and very few humans can read it. But the images should tell you the story."

She turned the page and there were people on this one, swords and sticks and weapons in hand, fighting against each other while animals joined in around their feet, snarling at each other.

Niji nodded as she continued to turn over the pages. "Thousands of years ago, the world was at war. There was an imbalance of good and evil and a darkness known as Shenfa gripped every soul alive, his anger and hatred polluting every human and beast, making them despise each other, attacking anyone they came across, even their own family. High above, the forms of the moon and sun, the embodiment of balance, decided they needed to do something to stop this or the world would be destroyed. So, between them, they created and cast down seven stones to the planet."

Annamarie turned the page and saw the moon and sun with some kind of light bonding between them, creating seven stones, as Niji had said. The next page saw seven meteorites coming to earth and landing near a mountain and shadows stood around them.

On the next page, the shadows had taken shape.

"The stones called out to those who still had goodness inside them and summoned them. Seven animals came; a fox, a bee, a turtle, a peacock, a butterfly, a ladybug and a cat." He smiled as she quickly turned to him, her mouth agape and her eyes wide, having guessed what the story was but he nodded and continued. "It was the ladybug who was first to gain the confidence to touch a stone, followed by the cat. Hence these two were the most powerful. But the others soon followed and each one touched a stone. As they did, they were given the power of the sun and moon's balance and transformed into the kwami and the stones became the miraculous."

She turned the page and saw the seven little kwami along with each of them holding a simple colourful stone, nothing like the miraculous she knew now. She couldn't help but stare at the cat and bug kwami and wondered if they still looked like the image. After all, Froufrou looked the same in the pictures as he did now.

Walking around the table, Niji continued to explain. "With their new power and their new purpose, the seven kwami went off into the world and picked a champion each from the humans, those who had skills that matched their own."

"Like confidence for the peacock?"

"Yes. The miraculous stones protected them from Shenfa's power and together these champions were able to seal away the imbalance and return harmony to the world."

She turned page after page, watching each Kwami find someone to help and transform, watching the first seven fight against an undefined shape, almost a man in the centre but with a fire consuming its whole body, two pure red eyes glaring out. It was a hard dramatic image to look at and on the second page, she watched as they finally pushed the shadow into what looked like a crystal.

"Once their work was done, and the world was on the right path once more, the seven created this temple as a place to house their knowledge and to give thanks to the sun and moon who had blessed them."

To match his description, the book showed the people building the very temple she was now sitting in and had a massive festival with everyone enjoying themselves. However, the next page was different, she could see the sun and the moon and two new shapes, that looked rather like kwami, standing before the seven original ones and their chosen.

Niji nodded as she stared at the page. "The moon and sun were so pleased with their work that they decided to come down from the heavens and watch over the seal of Shenfa, their power keeping his under control so the seven could travel the world and ensure peace was maintained. They have continued to do so ever since."

"So… the sun and moon…" She questioned, voice a whisper as she looked at the red and white shapes before her. "They are…"

"Here. Yes." Niji explained, looking at the picture from the other side of the table. "Many of the acolytes train here in hopes of proving themselves worthy of seeing them, to learn from them. But only a true pure hearted chosen can see the sun and moon kwami. In the thousands of years this temple has stood, only five have ever proven themselves worthy to see them."

Annamarie stared at the page. "But… what has this to do with me?"

"The sun and moon have unlimited power; they have power over all life and creation." He turned his attention to her. "I believe, if you can find them, they can cure you."

Standing up sharply, Annamarie's mouth dropped open. "How? Where are they?"

"I do not know."

"Then… the five who do know…"

"Died many years ago." He finished for her. "I'm sorry Annamarie but no one alive knows how to find the kwami of the sun or moon."

She stuffed her hands into her trouser pockets and sighed. "Great… so… we find a cure and it's a dead end. I mean, 'a true pure hearted chosen'? How am I going to prove myself pure hearted when I have…" She stopped and just waved a hand at herself to empathies her point.

"You may still be able to."

"What?"

"Yes, the other soul in you is dark and evil and the sun and moon would never reveal themselves to that. But your soul is split. Two completely different halves. And the half that is in control, your half… may yet be able to prove itself."

"How?"

"That depends on you. But if you want my recommendation?"

"Yes!"

He gave her half a smile. "Stop hiding in your room. Get out and do something with your time here. Come here and read, I will happily teach you the language of these books. You can work in the garden or kitchen, or the stables and fields. There is plenty to do. So find something to do with your time."

She looked down at the image on the book, concentrating on the two celestial kwami. "I guess I have been sulking."

"I understand why, Annamarie, you are scared of hurting someone." Niji said, reaching to his side. "Which is why I have this for you." She looked and saw him holding out a small wooden pendant on a string while in the middle was a pure blue stone. "This is a soul stone. When the stone is bright, like it is now, you are the soul in control. But, should it turn black, then…"

"The other me is in control." She said, taking it gratefully and letting it hang around her neck. "Thank you Master."

"You're welcome. Now, perhaps you will join us for dinner tonight? You have barely touched your food for days. You need to eat Annamarie." He placed a hand on her shoulder but she shied away. He didn't comment, just led her back out and to the dining room.

She managed to eat a few mouthfuls, more out of hunger than desire to eat, it all tasted bland to her but as the meal ended and Niji and Dawa left the room, Annamarie found herself looking for the boy she'd been playing with a few days ago. He wasn't hard to miss, not with that hair, soon finding him grinning at her and walking over, with a small tip of his head as he stood next to her.

"I…" she started. "I… wanted to say… I'm sorry for before."

His smile vanished for a moment but then returned and he nodded, beckoning her to follow him. With a defeated sigh, she did, going with him up into the higher levels of the temple and, oddly, into her room. She gave him a funny look as he jumped up and landed happily on the nest of pillows on the floor, a few feathers flying up into the air as he did. "What are you doing?" She asked, watching him wiggle around to get comfortable.

She was beginning to think she'd let a dog into her room for the way he was acting.

Once comfortable, he smiled at her and reached into his pocket, pulling out a long flat leaf and lifting it to his lips. The air soon was filled with a soft strange music as the little boy played for her while Annamarie sat across from him. She watched him and listened until her eyes began to droop, closing for a moment before she forced them open again until they didn't open and her heart rate slowed as she slept.

On seeing her asleep, the boy stopped, jumping up and running to the bed to grab the top sheet and dragged it unceremoniously across the floor, draping it over the peacock as she slept.

Then he curled up at her side, smiling.


A/N: So as promised, chapter updates are going to be a lot faster now! Part of me wants to start publishing Feather's Flight before December.

Also, I'm off to the ballet today so I thought why not publish a chapter about our poor tortured ballerina?

Anyway, enjoy and don't forget to review!